The top seed and a possible share of the District 1-5A high school football title will come down to the last game of the regular season.

Second-ranked Franklin travels to face No. 5 El Dorado tonight and the winner secures the No. 1 spot for the Division I (large school) bracket and a matchup with the second seed from District 2-5A. Both teams have clinched a playoff spot, but a victory for Franklin (8-1, 5-1 in district) also gives the Cougars at least a share of the District 1-5A title.

"We really have to win this game," said Franklin running back Vince Garcia. "We want that good seed, that district title. It just sets us up well for the big picture of the playoffs."

El Dorado (6-3, 4-2) will try to recover from a tough loss to No. 3 Americas last week. Going into that game, the Aztecs had a chance to stay alive in the district title race, but were pummeled by 29 points.

The big reason: El Dorado was pushed around on the lines of scrimmage.

"They dominated us in the trenches," El Dorado coach Jim Althoff said. "But we have to regroup. There's still a lot of football left, and there's a lot on the line again."

Franklin, however, will have bigger offensive and defensive lines than Americas did. The Cougars have two Division I recruits on the offensive line in Connor Potts and Derek Elmendorff.

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The two tackles are both over 6-4 and 285 pounds and have combined for 82 pancakes, a major reason Franklin averages 488 yards of offense a game. They give protection to quarterback Cameron Candelaria and open holes for Garcia (1,015 yards rushing) and Marcos Hernandez (1,174 total yards).

"They run the ball really well," Althoff said. "Our defensive line, guys like Trey Smith, have to be big."

Defensively, the Cougars are led by Devin Houx and Ivan Moreno, both 6-3, 235 pounds. They open the way for linebackers Ruben Gonzalez (eight sacks) and Jeremy Rodriguez (85 tackles).

But Franklin, as No. 1 Montwood showed, can be susceptible to the pass in the secondary. That can bode well for El Dorado and their plethora of speedy receivers.

LeDerrick Wilson (11 TDs) and Quinton Childs (868 receiving yards, including 258 last week) have burned opposing secondaries with their speed. Cade Terrazas (23 TDs) has been good at distributing the ball when he can evade pressure.

"Those guys can make big plays and are dangerous," Franklin coach Daren Walker said. "We have to keep them in front of us."

Evan Mohl may be reached at emohl@elpasotimes.com; 546-6381. Follow him on Twitter @EvanMohl.

Game of the night

What: No. 2 Franklin vs. No. 5 El"Dorado in a high school football game.